Attract More Bugs To Your Yard With The Help Of A Plastic Nursery Pot
We may receive a commission on purchases made from links.
Although many gardeners and homeowners spend much of their time looking for ways to naturally repel bugs from gardens and lawns, there are some bugs you don't want to kill. In fact, when it comes to insects such as ladybugs, you may need to consider trying to attract more of them because they help control pests that can cause damage to your plants. Ladybugs, along with critters such as beetles and spiders, are efficient predators of bugs that damage gardens and lawns, making them an excellent choice for natural pest control.
However, these predator bugs won't stick around your gardens just because they have a food source. They also need an adequate supply of water and sufficient shelter is also necessary to build up an ample force of these predators to help control pests in your garden. To that end, if you've been looking for a way to repurpose leftover plastic nursery pots, you'll be happy to learn they can be used make a suitable homestead for beneficial bugs. When combined with various biodegradable materials, landscape pots can attract more bugs to your yard.
Use landscape pots to make simple shelters for helpful bugs
Sometimes, hacks like adding cinnamon to banish pests like aphids doesn't always work. This is where it's worthwhile to deploy some help. Ladybugs, spiders, centipedes, beetles and other creatures that prey on destructive bugs typically need tight cracks and crevices or places they can burrow in. There are a variety of ways to create these houses and habitats. While some call for containers made of wood, glass, or metal, using plastic landscape pots is preferable in many instances because gardeners often have a variety of them left after transplanting. Even if you don't have some lying around, lightweight plastic nursery pots are incredibly cheap.
The simplest method for creating a habitat for spiders, ladybugs and other creatures is to lay a pot on its side and cover the bottom with a bit of straw or hay. Adding a few rocks will give the creatures a few cracks and crevices to wedge in as well as weigh the pot down to keep in from blowing away in the wind. This very simple method allows the bugs to easily enter the habitat and also provides a waterproof space for spiders to build webs.
Another method involves building a tube habitat. While some advocate for building a permanent house with wood and PVC tubes, you can also utilize biodegradable materials for the tubes. Stacking cardboard tubes from toilet paper or paper towel rolls inside the plastic landscape tube is one possibility. Rolling up thick paper or old magazines is another. You can also use small sections of bamboo, which is an all-natural tube. Once the pot is filled with tubes, lie it on its side in your garden, or hang it with a wire, string, or nail from a fence or tree limb.